图式理论在英语报刊阅读教学中的应用研究_英语论文

Application of the Schema Theory to the English Newspaper Reading Teaching 

摘要

英文报刊阅读，作为英语课程的必要的补充，优势非常显著。不仅能提高学生的学习兴趣，锻炼阅读能力，还能帮助他们了解中西方文化的差异。而相较于一般的英语阅读材料，由于报刊文章独有的语言形式和文体特点，对于英语专业的学生来说也是一个挑战。因此, 指导学生进行报刊阅读的训练并为传授有效的阅读方法是有必要的。

图式理论起源于心理学。后来被延伸应用于外语学习领域，尤其是对阅读教学有较大的影响。图式理论中最重要的观点是认为文章本身并不包含着固定的意思，阅读是读者已有的图式知识与文本本身的互动过程。因为读者所具有的图式不同，所以对文章的理解便不尽相同。读者的图式越完善，在阅读时被激活使用的可能性就越大。当新信息和人们已有的图式相互作用的时候, 人们才会有正确的理解。图式的多寡直接影响到读者对文章的理解。

在英语报刊阅读领域，因为报刊阅读特有的语言形式和文体特点，有关图式理论应用的研究较为匮乏。本文尝试通过对照试验来研究图式理论与英语报刊阅读能力之间的关系。本文首先对图示进行理论研究，阐明了三类图式阅读中的作用。之后，具体说明了图式理论在英语报刊教学的应用，以图式理论为理论基础设计了英语报刊阅读课堂。最后是在两个班级进行了对照教学实验研究。本文希望能引起更多学者对图示理论在英语报刊阅读中的运用问题的关注。

关键词：图式理论；英语教学；英语报刊阅读 

Abstract

The schema theory, stemming from the field of psychology, has been applied in English learning and has great influence on reading comprehension. The schema theory suggests that reading comprehension includes an interaction between readers’ schemata and the text itself. In this view, readers’ knowledge will affect their ability to absorb new information by providing a framework within which that new information might fit. The main principle of the schema theory is that the text itself does not carry meaning. Schemata provide readers with clues to comprehend the text. It can not only help the readers understand each individual word, sentence, but also grasp the main idea. So the schema theory has become necessary for its ability of balancing interaction in one’s reading process. 

The author strives to conduct a study on the application of the schema theory to the English newspaper reading through a research on two classes of students in college. The experiment focuses on whether the application of the schema theory has a positive effect on improving students’ levels of English newspaper reading, and if possible, how it works. It is hoped that this paper can encourage more teachers to apply the schema theory to their English newspaper teaching.

Keywords：schema theory；language learning；English newspaper reading

Contents

Acknowledgements i

English Abstract ii

Chinese Abstract iii

Table of Contents iv

List of Table vi

Chapter One Introduction 1

1.1 Background of the Study 1

1.2 Meaning of the Study 2

Chapter Two Literature Review 4

Chapter Three The Overview of the Schemata Theory 6

3.1 The Schema Theory 6

3.2 Classification of Schema 7

3.2.1 Linguistic Schemata 7

3.2.2 Content Schemata 8

3.2.3 Formal Schemata 9

Chapter Four Schema-based Teaching Reform in English Newspaper Reading Class 11

4.1 Pre-reading Activities 11

4.2 In-reading Activites 12

4.3 After-reading Activities 12

Chapter Five A Test on the application of the Schema Theory to the English Newspaper Reading 14

5.1 Design of the Test 14

5.1.1 Research Objective 14

5.1.2 Subjects 14

5.2 Instruments 14

Chapter Six Results and Discussion 16

6.1 Results 16

6.2 Findings 17

6.3 Inspirations to Teaching 18

Chapter Seven Conclusion  20

Appendix I 23